


Don't Judge A Book By It's Abilities

by dragonsareourfuture



Category: Death Note (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, I dont know how to tag anymore, L somewhat joins, Mello is not sure what to do, Niko Matsuda and Misa form an idiot squad, Niko is a little shit, Niko learns morals, No Romance, Other, Someone help, Y'know what they're all just annoying in their own wonderful ways, and Misa, but he does like guns, can be emotional but also they like to fuck with Light, general fuckery, im just fucking around at this point, lazer tag at one point, matt looks like a rectangle, seems deep and introspective but this is just for fun, so is L, so lazer tag, they all really like pillow forts, this was a while ago
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:09:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,950
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27357037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dragonsareourfuture/pseuds/dragonsareourfuture
Summary: The Death Note, a notebook of death, whatever you wish to call it, it still serves the same purpose. If you write someone's name in the notebook, that person will die. You cannot go back once untimely fate has struck its course. people who are granted the power of the Death Note cannot often help but use it at least once and, if they have any self restraint whatsoever, once is all it will be. but the majority discover a motivation within the power to kill. They become driven by it, allowing it to fuel their very being. but, suppose the Death Note itself was given a soul -- a consciousness. Would it enjoy watching everyone who comes across it fall to pieces under the power or would it want to escape?I wrote this a while ago and then school happened, so updates might be a bit slow as I only have the chapters that I worked on during the summer break written up now. Starting off with a few chapters to serve as set up, this book will graduate towards something more leaning towards a oneshot format where the chapters don't connect unless the oneshot is split into multiple parts. The main reason for this is because I wrote this to have fun with the characters without having the stress of connecting every chapter.
Kudos: 3





	1. She Came From The Fire

The crackle of police radios was the only thing grounding Yagami Light as he watched the scene unfold from behind the windshield of the helicopter. A bright red sports car had driven itself into a wall, now sitting, steaming and crumpled on the side of the road. Inside, the driver – who happened to be a suspect in the Kira case and a wealthy businessman, Kyosuke Higuchi – nodded in and out of consciousness. An army of police cars, including the helicopter piloted by the world’s greatest detective that Light sat in, surrounded the car in a semicircle. Time seemed to stand perfectly still as every officer and detective kept their eyes trained on Higuchi, watching for any sudden movements.

They had finally done it. Even if this was the third Kira they had encountered throughout their everlasting investigation, it was still a gigantic victory. This…this _murderer_ would be executed, silenced forever. It felt like a dream. Light kept waiting for the moment the world would fade around him and he would bolt up in bed, the constant threat of a killer on the loose still weighing in his chest.

Light was pulled back to earth by the voice of his own father, and the Chief detective heading the Kira task force, over the radios. “Ryuzaki, please let me go and make the arrest,” he addressed the man next to Light who was sitting with his knees pulled up to his chin in the pilot’s seat.

The name he used was only an alias, but the detective responded to it as if he had been called ‘Ryuzaki’ his entire life. “I understand, just please remember this is Kira—” Light nearly scoffed at the detective’s words. How could any of them forget? “—you should take any necessary precautions by hiding your face. Watari,” the dark haired man addressed the older man who, as Light understood, was as close to his caretaker as anyone could be. He was hanging out of the helicopter and had a sniper trained directly at Higuchi. “If Higuchi tries anything or if he makes any sudden moves—“

“Understood,” interrupted the grey haired man, “I will shoot to stop him, not to kill.”

Chief Yagami took one of the more reserved members of the task force, Mogi, from the protection of their cars. They headed, not to the suspect, but to a police car the pair seemed to recognize. Upon closer inspection, Light understood why. Through the dark tinted window he caught a glimpse of the afro they all grew to know before this officer left the task force to spend more time with his family.

It figures. Only one person would disobey L’s orders and bring the entire police force in on this. Light couldn’t help but internally applaud the man known as Aizawa for his bravery, but at the same time curse him for his disobedience.

“Aizawa, do you have something to cover your face with?” Light’s father asked through the officer’s now rolled down window.

Light was close to scolding his own father for wasting precious time. Yes, sentimental reunions were nice and Aizawa most certainly deserved to bring Kira to justice along with the current task force members, but to say they were on a tight schedule was an understatement. Higuchi could have one last trick up his sleeve, escape just before he is handcuffed and blindfolded, just about anything could happen within these few valuable seconds. Light was not a superstitious person, but it was clear that the way Kira kills was not of the human world. There was no telling what Higuchi’s last resort could be.

“I do,” Aizawa answered. 

“Good, cover me.”

“Yes sir,” Aizawa’s tone was determined as he climbed out of the car, “You can count on me, Chief.”

The trio approached the wreck. The obnoxiously red car steamed at the hood, emitting a hissing sound that could even be heard from inside the helicopter.

You see, science class taught Light many things, but no lesson was more valuable than the many rants his teacher would go on in the middle of class. These tangents taught him more than any planned lecture could, and it just so happened that one of these rants was about car crashes. The way cars crash in movies is scarcely different than how they crash in real life. In theaters you see over the top explosions and whatnot, when in reality it is extremely rare to have a car actually explode on impact. However, even if it is fairly rare for this to occur, cars will catch fire so hard and fast that it resembles an explosion. All it needs is something flammable, such as gasoline vapor, and a spark.

The reason his science class came to mind was that, as his father and teammates approached the wreckage, Light noticed both of the telltale signs that Higuchi’s car was about to catch fire at an alarming rate.

“Higuchi put your hands above your head and step out—“

“Dad! Get everyone out of there! The car’s gonna—“

_FWOOM._

Flames enveloped the car faster than Light could speak. Officers dove away from the heat as fast as they could and ducked behind their cars until the initial impact of the eruption died down.

“Aizawa—“

“I know, cover you,” said officer finished. After all that they’d been through Aizawa was more than prepared to dive into a blazing fire with the Chief.

Mogi was already stepping forward, nodding his approval before he was even addressed.

The three men rushed toward the flames.

Light found himself cringing as the flames licked at the bodies of the men he knew so well. His father took the driver’s side, throwing open the door despite the most likely scorching metal. He hauled a hefty body onto the asphalt and called over a couple of standby officers to help Higuchi’s limp body up and into a police car. Once Higuchi was carried away the chief glanced back as Mogi called his name. He hurried to where the man was standing and pointing to something inside the car that Light could not see. The Chief nodded and covered his face with the hem of his jacket, diving straight into the car through the driver’s side door and disappearing momentarily. The few seconds he was gone, Light felt as though his ribs were closing in on his heart and lungs. He had no idea what he would tell his mother if his dad didn’t make it out of there while he just sat there and watched it happen.

Luckily, a few seconds later, Chief Yagami reappeared, only a few tender and ash-covered spots on his skin. He handed a flat, black object to Mogi, having his hands full with the kicking and flailing woman—wait a minute…

“Who the hell is that!?” Light wondered aloud.

Through the radio, the Chief grunted as he tried his best to keep the girl under control. He led her thrashing body to a nearby police car. The look on his face alone was enough to get the owner of said car to rush to his aid, helping the woman into the back as her body writhed in agony. Mogi even tucked the notebook under his arm to keep the girl’s legs from kicking.

The first thing Light noticed about her was her lack of clothing. The bareness of her skin and how her deathly thin form twisted allowed him to get a good look at the sickening, bubbling flesh that covered the majority of her back. Light wondered how she could even move with a burn of such large scale and intensity, unless it was the burn that was causing her to cry and thrash so badly. Without clothing to shield her body from the heat she must have been in pure agony.

Finally, Light’s father was able to answer his question, the woman having been secured into the back of the police car with only a slight amount of difficulty. It was three physically fit men against a girl who looked like a living skeleton. The battle was won before it was even fought. “I…I don’t know. She was in the car along with Higuchi. She was holding onto a notebook for dear life.”

A notebook? Hadn’t Higuchi written down Matsuda’s fake name in that notebook? He acted as if that action alone would kill the task force member. Perhaps there was more to the notebook than they originally believed.

“Whoever she is, we must make sure that she lives. She could give us information about Kira. That is, if she was involved in Higuchi’s plans,” L instructed, seeming to be talking to himself by the end.

“But she wasn’t in the car when we watched Higuchi through the cameras back at headquarters!” Light protested. Could she be the invisible ‘Rem’ that Higuchi was talking to?

“I’ll bring you the notebook now,” the Chief turned, about to head over to the helicopter when he stopped dead in his tracks. He stared at the empty space in front of him, eyes bulging from their sockets. “A-A MONSTER!”

“Chief, What’s the—” Mogi began, rushing to his boss’s side before letting out a scream of his own.

“Mr. Yagami, Mogi, what seems to be the issue?” Ryuzaki asked in a tone much too casual for Light’s liking. His father was hallucinating, for god’s sake!

“Y-you don’t see it? It seems whoever touches the notebook can see it, then…” at this conclusion, the Chief tore his eyes away from the seemingly empty spot in the road to jog up to helicopter window. He practically threw the notebook at Ryuzaki, who caught it in midair and pinched it between his thumbs and forefingers.

“Hmm,” the detective hummed, examining the black leathery cover first, then scanning the road and even the sky for this so called “monster” before declaring that he saw nothing out of the ordinary besides a flaming car. “Ah, that reminds me: Watari, would you notify the fire department?”

“Already done. Also, the hospital has been notified that a burn victim is on her way and must be treated right away.”

“Wonderful.”

Mogi interrupted this little exchange with garbled words of protest, “W-what do you mean you don’t see it!? It- it’s _right_ there!”

“Relax, Mr. Mogi. I am simply saying that perhaps it is not the notebook that triggers such a vision.”

This idea caused a lightbulb to go off in Light’s head. His head spun to look out the window at the police car the mysterious girl had been shoved into. She was no longer violently thrashing as she had been, but was now curled into a tight little ball.

Sure enough, just as Light suspected, the officer who had helped her into his car was not speeding to the hospital as he should have been. Instead, he remained where he was, eyes glued to the same spot Mogi and the Chief had pointed out, a look of horror plastered onto his face. He was seeing the monster as well. That means…

“Ryuzaki, I think you’re right. It’s not the notebook.” The brunet leaned back in his seat to give the detective a clear view out of the passenger’s side window at the third horrified officer.

Ryuzaki’s already insect-like eyes bulged further. He breathed, “It’s the girl.”


	2. Adopting A Magical Death Girl

“’How to use it’,” Aizawa began, reading from the notebook recovered from Higuchi’s car, “It says the human whose name is written in this notebook…shall die.”

Light continued to type away on his computer, not even giving a glance back at the officers who crowded the sofas behind him. Aizawa continued to rattle off rules written in the notebook, but Light hated to admit that he was hardly paying attention. There was one thing on his mind, the one thing that it seemed no one at the task force was prepared to address yet. Who was that girl? And how did she suddenly appear in the fire? Perhaps this… _Shinigami_ knew.

It was still strange for Light to accept the existence of Shinigami, but both his father and Mogi insisted it was real. Not to mention, as more proof, they had asked the Shinigami to show itself to the rest of the task force. Promptly after, the notebook began to float around their heads like an insect. It was safe to say no one else needed more proof.

“As well, the back cover as more instructions on how to use it,” Aizawa continued, “There are two more rules: If you make this note unusable by tearing it up or burning it, all humans who have touched the note until then will die.”

“What!? Is that true, Aizawa?” Matsuda cut in.

“Relax,” said a voice from right beside Light. God, it seemed this man was always right beside him. It was beginning to give Light the creeps. “The notebook is not the source of this killing power anymore. It has been transferred to the girl, for whatever reason. You haven’t touched the girl yet, have you, Matsuda?”

The youngest task force member blushed at L’s phrasing. “W-Well, no—“

“Then you will not die if she dies. Still, if none of us want to be left out of this investigation, it would be wise for all of us to be able to see the Shinigami. I say that you all go to the hospital and gain the ability to see the thing and ask her a few questions. See what she really knows about Kira and the power to kill.”

“What about you, Ryuzaki?” the Chief asked.

“Me? Well, I’ll do that when we bring her here.”

Light’s fingers froze on the keyboard. He gawked at Ryuzaki as if he had proposed they all go and jump off a cliff.

“What!? Bring her here!? Ryuzaki, that’s a horrible—“ Aizawa began, and was cut off by L’s usual bored tone.

“Regardless of what she actually knows, do you really want someone with the power to kill and no guidance wandering the streets? This is no longer an inanimate object. This is a human being who can speak and think for themself. Whether we take her in as a prisoner or a partner…well, that depends on what side she’s on.”

“So we’re just going to adopt this strange killing machine?”

Light would have laughed if the situation wasn’t so dire.

L shifted around in his usual crouched position before answering, “’Adopt’ is a strong word but, essentially…yes.”

Aizawa huffed, knowing full well that arguing with L was futile. “Alright, fine. But even if she has the power to kill, she doesn’t have the power to teleport, right? So how did she get in Higuchi’s car, huh?”

“I have a theory about that. Mr. Yagami? Mogi? Would you tell me what the Shinigami thinks of it?” The two men nodded and the detective explained his theory to the task force, “The girl…she came _out_ of the notebook.”

Aizawa scoffed. Matsuda laughed nervously. The chief held up a hand to the officers and said, “Let’s hear him out. Has he led us down the wrong path before?”

“Thank you, Mr. Yagami. As I was saying, before this girl occupied a human body, she was the _force_ that kills. As the car burned, the notebook and its power were in danger. Similar to defense mechanisms in the animal kingdom, the notebook ejected its power so that it could live on in a more capable source – a human body. The creation of this human body would explain why she was not clothed. It only created what was organic. How am I doing?”

A pause while Light’s father and Mogi listened to what the Shinigami had to say about L’s theory.

“It- it says you’re spot on. Ryuzaki, how did you know all that?” Mogi said with disbelief.

“It’s simple, really. You’re telling me none of you have ever read a fantasy novel? They come up with the wildest things…Anyway I think you should all get going. Watari will drive you to the burn center the girl has been transferred to.”

The others all gathered their coats and made their way out of headquarters while Light remained seated at his computer. He sighed and logged off, rolling his chair away from the desk. Something wasn’t right here. He knew that in the back of his mind, but he wasn’t sure why he was thinking such things. Maybe it was because this was literally insane. Still, Light knew that whoever this was held a load of secrets that they could only uncover by talking to her, maybe even housing her. It wasn’t the ideal situation, but if they were going to succeed in catching Kira then every ounce of information had to be extracted from this…person.

“What’s holding you back, Light?” inquired the hunched detective, returning his focus to the stack of little jam cartons in front of him. His tone was high and even a bit playful. He wasn’t suspecting Light of something because of that slight hesitation, was he? Of course he was, stubborn Ryuzaki.

“Don’t tell me you’re suspicious just because I took longer than the others! When are you gonna drop this whole ‘me being Kira’ business?” Light asked, jamming his arms through his jacket sleeves.

“Hmm. Forget it. Go on, you don’t want them to leave without you.”

* * *

Judging by this mysterious girl’s behavior when they dragged her, kicking and screaming, from the burning car Light had expected her to be in shock when they arrived at the burn center that night. You know, like having to wait for at least an hour before she even spoke a word and when she did utter any syllables they would be hushed and barely audible. What they did not expect was for her to sit bold upright when they walked through the door, immediately recoiling due to the pain, and proceeding to speak so fast that it all sounded like a jumbled mess.

One of the nurses had to place a hand on her arm and demonstrate breathing deeply, causing the girl to follow in his lead, making Light wonder how many times she had gone on and on without a breath. Once she was all calmed down, she pointed to Mogi and the Chief and spoke slowly, as if consciously trying to keep herself from talking too fast. “You saved me. Thank you.”

Before the two men could respond, the nurse was now in front on them. “I’m sorry, but there are only two visitors allowed at a time.”

“Matsuda and I will speak with her first. The rest of you kindly wait outside, “Chief Yagami instructed. The task force followed his orders without question.

The nurse left the room, announcing that he would be back with more pain medication. Soichiro and Matsuda pulled the chairs by the window to the side of the girl’s hospital bed. She did her best to adjust herself so that she could face them, but the injury on her back forced her into a strange and undoubtedly uncomfortable position. She rested her chin on a pillow and looked at them expectantly.

“Well, first thing’s first. What do we call you?” the Chief asked.

“Hmm? Call me? I…well, I don’t know! You mean like a name, right? Yeah, I don’t have one of those. What’s _your_ name?”

“Soichiro. Soichiro Yagami.”

“Wait, so you don’t have a name?” Matsuda asked, to which the girl shook her head excitedly.

“Nope!”

“Do you want one?”

“Matsuda! She’s not a dog at the pound!” Chief Yagami scolded.

The girl’s head perked up, remembering not to make any more sudden movements that would irritate her burn. “I can have a name!?”

“Yeah! Lemme just think for a second…” Matsuda brought his hand to his face, tapping his chin as his eyes scanned her for a title that fit. She seemed perky, rather cheerful as well. “A name…name, na—…ni—Niko! What about Niko?”

“ _Niko_ …” she tested the name out, enjoying the way it rolled off her tongue. “I like it!” She turned back to Soichiro and nodded firmly as if to confirm the name was now set in place. “You can now call me Niko.”

Although it scared the Chief how much she and Matsuda seemed to be getting along, he decided not to worry about that at the moment and begin his string of questioning.

“So, Niko, I want you to answer these questions with as much detail and honesty as you can, alright? Good. Now, what do you remember?”

Niko let her fingers wander to her hair, twirling a long black strand around her slender index finger before bringing it to her mouth and chomping down as if it were a piece of gum. “Everything,” she deadpanned.

“So you remember being under Higuchi’s ownership?”

“Oh, much farther back than that! I remember back when the notebook was first created in the Shinigami realm. That must have been thousands—millions of years ago, maybe even more than that.” Matsuda glanced at the Chief for a reaction to this incredible information but the older man’s face remained stoic. “I was aware of everything that went on around me. For all that time up until now I’ve been nothing more than an observer. But now…well I can do anything! This world is so interesting and developed since my last time seeing earth. Of course it was nice then too, but—“

“Hold on!” Although Matsuda could practically feel the aura of annoyance radiating from the chief, he just had to know more. He could be scolded later. “You must know so much of you’ve been around for that long!”

Niko laughed and the strand of hair between her teeth fell back onto the pillow. She pulled a new strand to her lips and gave it the same treatment as she spoke, slightly muffling her words. “I wish. I only saw and heard whatever the notebook was exposed too. It was mostly just muffled conversation from the inside of a bag or a drawer. Pretty boring,” she pouted, “But sometimes I’d hear actual conversations!”

Matsuda’s face fell. He was about to say more when the Chief held out a hand, halting the younger man’s words to continue with the questioning. Matsuda backed down and pressed his lips together.

“You weren’t content with the conditions? Does that mean that you weren’t fond of your power either?”

Niko’s brows furrowed and she took a slight pause before answering. “I’ve never really thought about my power before.”

The chief nodded. “Do you think about your…I hate to say ‘owner’ but, well…do you hold a grudge against people who use the notebook?”

“A grudge? Well, I guess I…I should, right? Because what my power can do is bad, isn’t it?”

“Kill people? Yes, I believe that would be considered fairly bad.”

Niko nodded with a thoughtful frown tugging at her features. Then, having a sudden thought she perked right back up again. “How do you know all of this stuff about me without me telling you?”

“Ah, well…” They knew full well how difficult it would be to tell her about the strange reclusive detective that wanted her to live with them, so the chief decided to hold off on that conversation and bring it up another time, electing to be as vague as possible for now and hoping that Niko wouldn’t pry as much as she wanted to. “We have a very wise consultant on this case with us.”

Eventually the questioning was over and done with and Niko was sufficiently worn out, the medication causing her to have less energy than normal and even with that she managed to seem jumpy. The two men returned their chairs to their rightful spots next to the window. Matsuda was about to exit when he remembered the other task L had sent them to complete.

“There is one other thing, Niko.”

“Hmm?” She hummed, tilting her head to the side.

“If you are comfortable with it, we have to come into contact with your skin. In order for our investigation to proceed, we must be able to see the Shinigami who owned your notebook.”

“Oh! Sure thing,” Niko chirped, holding out her pale as bone arm for the men.

Matsuda awkwardly poked her flesh, gazing around the room afterward. Right next to the girl’s bed was a towering figure made of what looked like bone. Spindly legs tapered up to unusually broad shoulders and a hunched back, reminding Matsuda of L’s posture. A pair of yellow, cat-like eyes stared back at the two men, causing any words the younger man might have uttered to be caught in his throat. Though, the creature seemed calm, almost serene in its stillness that it was difficult for Matsuda to be scared of it after the initial shock.

After both men could see the Shinigami they thanked the drained girl and turned to leave. Matsuda followed the Chief until he paused to address the girl he dubbed as Niko one more time before his departure.

“Do you want to know more? About this world, I mean. Because I’d be happy to stop by in a few days to teach you some things and check up on you!”

“Really? That’s awesome!” Niko nodded vigorously and pushed her hair away from her grinning face. “This ‘skin graph’ thing’s a pain in the butt so it’d be nice to have someone to talk to.”

With that Matsuda left the room, both parties now equipped with a smile.

Once Matsuda and the Chief exited the room, the next established group of two, Light and Aizawa, entered soon after. With Niko’s room door closed and Mogi practically dozing off by the water fountain, the Chief deemed the setting an appropriate one to yell at Matsuda.

“What was that? I know your first instinct is to be friendly, that’s just who you are—” the young ex-officer’s face grew red as he scratched at the back of his neck. “—but she hasn’t been completely cleared of suspicion. She could still be dangerous and for you to treat her like a casual friend is completely unprofessional.”

“I’m sorry, chief! But…you heard her. Stuck as an observer, nothing interesting happening…being forced to, y’know, kill people for thousands of years without any say in it…that’s an existence that no one deserves. If I could just show her that life can be more than what she’s used to…maybe she’d be more inclined to help us with the investigation?” he seemed unsure if it would actually work out that way, but flashed a hopeful yet bashful smile nonetheless.

The chief sighed, running a hand down his face and being careful to avoid knocking his glasses off of his face. “Look—“

He was unable to finish when a scream tore through the hallway.


	3. Keep Your Word

The fact that the source of the shout sounded so familiar only made the three remaining men outside the room rush quicker to throw open the door. The trio all squeezed through the door at once, drawing their guns once inside only to find Light with his jaw open as wide as it would go, staring in the Shinigami’s direction as his hand rested on the pale girl’s outstretched arm. He emitted a scream that caught the attention of multiple nurses and doctors, all scurrying in to see who was dying. Niko eyed Light’s screaming face with upturned eyebrows and a slack jaw.

Light had finally calmed down, eyes still wild and breathing ragged as doctors and nurses crowded him, some scolding him for making such a fuss and others making sure he was alright.

“Oh, come on, Light! It’s not _that_ terrible to look at!” Matsuda piped up, gesturing to the Shinigami next to Niko’s bed.

“Anyone would be shocked to see a creature such as this. Son? Are you alright?”

“Y-yeah.” Light did not look alright, but as quickly as it had happened, Light fixed his features to make him appear embarrassed. “I guess it’s gonna take a bit of getting used to, you know?”

Still, even with his bashful façade, he couldn’t hide how his eyes scanned Niko as if she were a bomb about to explode. This…this did NOT go according to plan. Who the _hell_? There were not supposed to be _people_ shooting out of the Death Note! He silently cursed Ryuk for forgetting to mention this other extremely important little detail about the Death Note…unless the Shinigami had no idea himself?

“Niko! Is everything alright?” Matsuda stressed, sliding his gun into its holster now that he was sure he didn’t need it.

Before the girl could respond, Aizawa held up a hand to interrupt. “Wait, ‘Niko’? She has a name already? I thought she was just…like…created.”

“Uh, well, I gave her a name earlier.”

“You _named_ her? Matsuda, once you name things, you start getting _attached_ to them—“

“Could you not call her a ‘thing’ please?”

“Uh, I need food,” Niko piped up, attempting to lift herself out of bed. “Light, was it? Could you help me to the vending machine?”

The nurses made a fuss about getting up in her state, but she would not relent. She batted them all away like flies and reached out for Light’s arm and he helped her get to her feet. Niko pointed Light in the direction of the nearest vending machine, hobbling down the hall in nothing but a hospital gown.

“Ah, here.” Light pulled a dollar’s worth of quarters from his pocket and handed them over to Niko who was still staring through the glass, contemplating what treat to spend Light’s dollar on.

“Thanks! Oh, I have something to tell you.” She slid each quarter into the little slot and pressed the button for 2A – chewy sour candy. “I know that you’ve been killing people using my notebook.”

Light had to force his breathing to stay steady and even. A false smile crept over his features and he tilted his head to the side. He only hoped that the rapid beating of his heart was quieted by the insulation of bone and muscle, because it was louder than a drum in his ears. “What are you talking about?”

_Yeah, that’s it, play the innocent card._

“Granted, it has been a while since you told the Shinigami to give it to Higuchi, but you used my notebook from the very beginning. What are they calling you…? Kira, right? It has a nice ring to it!”

For once in his life, Light was speechless. She knew. She knew he was Kira and she sure as hell didn’t mind telling him that in the middle of a hospital hallway. This girl was dangerous to him, but the question was if she was more dangerous around the task force or out in the public. Would the general public really believe some lunatic claiming they knew who Kira was? People do that all the time. But even so, if he tried to force her away from the investigation that would only make Light more suspicious. Even if he told Misa to kill her with the Death Note when he got back, the suspect pool would be narrowed down to people who knew of this girl’s existence and power – basically just the task force. And then with all this alone time he was spending with her, Light was sure he would once again become a prime suspect. This was…not even close to a disaster. This was _much_ worse.

“Oh?” Light laughed, trying his best to stay cool and collected. “I think you’re a bit confused.”

Niko bent down to pick up the sour candy from the dispenser, tearing it open immediately after she got her hands on it. “I don’t think so. I heard your theorizing and maniacal laughter practically every day, it’s you. Plus, that little outburst back there was you regaining your memories, right? I just want to make a deal with you.”

_A deal? What the hell does she think she’s going to accomplish here?_

It was difficult to think with Niko’s intrusive doe eyes scanning his face while she shoved candies into her mouth. Would he give in and admit that he was Kira so he could find out what this deal was, or would he keep playing innocent? She seemed pretty sure of herself in her accusation of him being Kira and it was unlikely that she would just let something like this go.

“Fine, what deal?”

She grinned through a mouthful of sour gummies and swallowed them all in one gulp. “I want you to stop killing people. In return, I won’t tell anyone that you’re Kira.”

“How do I know that you’ll keep your word?” Light asked, fully aware that he was not about to keep _his_ word.

Niko sighed, tilting her now empty candy bag so all the leftover citric acid collected in one corner. She dipped her finger into it and licked the white substance from her equally pale finger. “I’ve been killing people for as long as I can remember. That’s what I was created to do. Then I got here and learned that, _apparently_ , people don’t really like that. So, I figured, if I could do this one thing to help people by stopping them from dying instead of making them suffer…I don’t know, it’s dumb.”

“You want to prove that you’re more than just your power and what you’ve done in the past. I get it. But…isn’t that a little insensitive?”

“Huh?”

“You want to stop people from suffering but it’s to prove yourself, not for the good of humanity.”

“Ha! Alright, Mr. ‘I am God’” Niko threw her head back and downed the last of the citric acid.

“I’m trying to create a new world, free of evil,“ Light muttered, “Being the god of that world is just…well, like a perk. Who else would do it?”

Niko shrugged and crumpled up the candy bag, placing it on top of a nearby trash can. “My point is I’ll keep my word. But…do we have a deal? You’ve already eliminated so many criminals, made so many people fear you. Don’t you want to quit while you’re ahead?”

Light did all he could to keep from laughing. This girl really was stupid. She had no sense of justice whatsoever. It was almost sickening, but what could he expect? Living for thousands of years without anyone to tell you what morals even were had to make you a bit messed up in the head. Still, this deal was preposterous. He would just have to trick her into thinking that he stopped killing somehow. It should be easy. She was _literally_ born yesterday.

“It’s a deal.”

It was when they shook on it that Light realized how thin she really was. He could practically feel the bones through her fingers, as if he were shaking hands with the dead. And so it was done, the deal was set, and Light was prepared to dishonor it with as much secrecy as he could. Who knew what Niko could or would do if she found out that he had no intention of keeping his word?

“Ah—um… are you guys okay? Light, your dad was starting to get worried about you,” Matsuda said, just turning the corner as Niko and Light’s hands retracted from one another.

“Oh, in that case we should probably get back.” Light let Niko use his arm for support as they headed back to her room.

_Great, another obstacle in the way of my plans._


End file.
